Standalone Arduino Nano RP2040 Connect-controlled computer runs BASIC for IoT development

Reading Time: 3 minutesIf you’re more than 30 years old, then there is a good chance that BASIC (Beginners’ All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) was the first programming language you used. Many early computers shipped with a BASIC interpreter in firmware, so it was the first thing users saw when they booted up their computer. While other languages are […]

Count elevator passengers with the Nicla Vision and Edge Impulse

Reading Time: 3 minutesModern elevators are powerful, but they still have a payload limit. Most will contain a plaque with the maximum number of passengers (a number based on their average weight with lots of room for error). But nobody has ever read the capacity limit when stepping into an elevator or worried about exceeding it. In reality, […]

A DIY non-contact digital tachometer for machinists

Reading Time: 3 minutesA tachometer is a device that counts the revolutions of a rotating object, with the most well-known example being the automotive tachometer that monitors the revolutions per minute (RPMs) of an internal combustion engine. But tachometers are useful, and sometimes a requirement, in many other applications. RPM is a very important datum when working with […]

Zen sand garden in a suitcase doubles as MIDI controller

Reading Time: 3 minutesAt the shallow end of the pool, a MIDI (musical instrument digital interface) controller can be as simple as a handful of buttons that correspond to different notes. But even as one wades into the deep end of the pool, MIDI controllers tend to still look like hunks of plastic with some knobs and keys. […]

Mokey is an affordable DIY laser engraver

Reading Time: 3 minutesAll makers love lasers and they make great shop tools. Even low-power lasers can engrave a variety of materials. Cutting material requires more power, with the most popular cutting lasers being CO2 with power between 10W-100W. But the small, affordable solid state laser modules can cut some materials, like acrylic, if you get a powerful […]

Shop fan automatically activates when airborne particulates are present

Reading Time: 2 minutesEven if you’re one of the few people in the world who is consistent about wearing a respirator in the shop, it’s a good idea to run a filtration fan. Not only is that good for your own health and comfort, it can help keep your equipment running well — the last thing you want […]

Art class stinks! Learn with smell in art class using this olfactory display

Reading Time: 3 minutesBy Maria Nikoli, Interaction Designer, MSc., Malmö University Smelling is crucial to our everyday living. But how well do we really understand the role that smells play in our day-to-day? Ask someone who temporarily lost their sense of smell because of COVID-19. They’ll probably tell you about how incredibly boring eating became all of a sudden, […]

Beating unscrupulous arcade owners at their own games

Reading Time: 2 minutesMark Rober isn’t just a talented mechanical engineer and entertaining personality, he is also something of a champion of justice for the common man. He’s already proved that several times with his famous yearly porch pirate-targeted pranks, but now he’s taking on the corrupt fat cats running arcades for children. Those arcades are often full […]

I Make Paper Miniatures By Upcycling Old Books

Reading Time: 4 minutesWorking with paper doesn’t stop amazing me, the concentration in detail I put on all my peaces makes me feel free and very very happy. More info: Facebook I make Paper Miniatures and incorporate some of them to my Book Sculptures I make Paper Miniatures and incorporate some of them to my Book Sculptures I […]